Awareness, Attitudes and Perceptions of Safety among Slum Residents in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

The mushrooming informal settlements in the urban areas is a 21st-century reality that is common in developing economies such as Kenya. The growth of slums is an indictment of the influx of an increasing number of youth people into urban areas in search of better ways of earning a living. The towns and cities, however, cannot cope with this rapid expansion, thereby condemning a significant proportion of the urban poor into the informal settlements. This study examined the awareness, attitude, and perception of the slum residents in Nairobi, Kenya. The study focused on Kibera, Korogocho, Mathare, and Mukuru slums. The study included residents aged 18 years and above whose participation in the study was determined using systematic random sampling. A total of 659 respondents were involved in completing a survey with the help of the researcher. The data were analysed with the aid of the Statistical Package of Social Science (SPSS) software, adopting the descriptive analysis method, and the results were presented using tables. The findings indicated that the living conditions of the residents in these informal settlements were deplorable, a factor that contributed to the crime incidents in the area. The residents had average education levels, most of them were unemployed and considered the economy as their greatest problem, with unemployment being associated with criminality. The residents were fearful of crime happening in their vicinity, though they noted that the rates of criminality had decreased and they expected it to go down in the next year. The residents identified early evening as the peak hour for criminal activity and that they were likely to be victimized outside their homes, even though a significant number of crimes also happened at their homes. The study recommendation sensitization of residents through programs such as workshops targeting distinct groups and the establishment of community radio. The study also recommended the establishment of land tenures in the settlement to facilitate the upgrading of the housing and amenities infrastructure, therefore eliminating environmental factors encouraging criminality.